Reducing Elderly Health Disorders through Laughing Yoga Therapy: Case Study in Badung Regency

Abstract

Besides depression (mental illness) due to an increasingly increasing burden of life and infectious diseases, modern people in the 4.0 era are now faced with non-communicable diseases due to behavior and lifestyle, namely chronic respiratory diseases, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes mellitus. The health psychology approach in the form of yoga therapy is quite an effective solution in reducing various problems in the health of modern people. This scientific work discusses efforts to reduce health problems for the elderly through laughing yoga in Mangupura City, Badung. This publication is the result of a qualitative study whose data was obtained through observation, document studies and interviews with selected elderly people as informants, as well as questionnaires for 40 elderly respondents who experienced health problems. The results showed that the practice of laughing yoga in Badung Regency was a type of yoga activity combined with gymnastic movements carried out for 2 hours, open to the public and free. The process of laughing yoga carried out in Badung Regency includes five stages; opening prayer, stretching, laughing yoga, Jagadhita yoga, and Shiva Sambo puja as a closing. The practice of laughing yoga has an effective effect to reduce various health problems for the elderly (45 years and above), both physical, psychological (psychological), social and spiritual health of the elderly participants. Laughing yoga can be developed to support the healthy living community movement.